Wire clipper and stripper



Patented June 23, 1953 UNITED As'mrrzs PATENT ori-lee WIRE CLIPPEB AND STRIPPER CharlesrH. Arnt and Woodrow A. Bowman, y

Chicago, Ill..

Application July 25, 1949, Serial No. 106,516.' v

ments for television sets has presented new prob-` lems for the efficient and advantageous conditioning of the ends of such twin lead wires so that they may be conveniently connected to conventional terminal posts. The prior art wire cutters and strippers could not `be advantageously employed for the purpose contemplated by the subject device since' conventionalv tools of this character are employed for merelydirect cutting and stripping of single wires while the present twin lead wire is designed so that the two wires are separated and are'parallel in a single plane and are held in this separated position, for example, by a polyethylene, or the like, composition to provide proper insulation to the wires. Y

It is recognized that in the prior art numerous attempts have been made to provide a universal wire cutter and stripper incorporating the features of the subject device and' efforts have been made to overcome the various deficiencies found in such prior art structures, but tothe best of the applicants knowledgethe prior art structures have had only limited success, and have been accorded only limited commercial recognition. It is believed that this fact results from apparent deicienciesiof the prior art structures particularly with respect to' their non-adaptability for universal application to twin lead transmission wire and their expensive construction which so greately increased the cost as to seriously handicap s ales acceptance. y

The present improvements in wire cutters, particularly characterized as having `features advantageously applicable to the conditioning and stripping of twin lead transmission wire in a manner contemplated by this invention, are directed to simplify their 'construction and their mode of operation. Mr` reovery the present device seeks to employ conventional parts wherever necessary and expedient, thereby to effect a substantial reduction in cost over prevailing types of wire cutters of this general class.

Accordingly, an object and accomplishment of the invention is tor provide a wire cutter designed andadapted to condition twin lead trans- Cl. 30A-229) mission wire. including normally disposed on the separatedvwires, there by exposing a predetermined amount` of vthe wire for advantageous connection to terminals; the:A

contemplated? wireY cutter'being also adapted` to cut the Wire.

A. further object and accomplishment of thea invention is to provide a wire cutter particularly' designed and adapted for advantageousfemploy'- ment in conditioning the ends of twin lead-trans mission wire, as aforesaid, and whichshallhave' a novel 4and compact 'arrangement of parts; Y wherein said parts can be readily assembled and.

f serviced. 20

TheV invention seekaas a further object and -f accomplishment', to provide a wire cutter as contemplated hereinand characterized by an, ar.-

rangement of parts'to` more advantageouly andk larly and advantageously applicable for employf ment in conjunction with twin lead transmis# Y sion wire, said wire'cutter being particularly char-Y acterized in its simple but sturdy construction and in its convenient fool-proof and safe operation.

Another particular object and accomplishment of the invention is to provide a wire cutter as contemplated herein by corelating and especailly designing the various elements thereof,'thereby there shall be cooperation between said improved` elements as will best serve the purpose of pro.

viding an efficient wire cutter and conditioner for twin lead transmission wire and capable ofr beingmanufactured at low cost and yet giving the maximum of service in use.

Additional objects, features and advantagesof the invention disclosed herein willbe apparent to persons skilled in the art after the construction and operation are understood from the within description. 4 .Y

It is preferred to accomplish the various objects of the invention and Vto practice the same in substantially the manner as hereinafterfmore thev removal of excess in sulation normally disposed between thev wires thereby to separate the wires and yet providethesewireswith sufficient insulation. and in addition, providing a stripper for removing apredetermined desired amount cf the insulation.

3 fully described and as more particularly pointed out in the appended claim.

With the above andY other incidental objects in view, the invention has other marked improve- Y ments and superiorities which radically distinguish it from presently known structures, these improvements in the invention residing inthe novel construction and the cooperating function of the parts thereof, the y combination of parts Yand the arrangement thereof, as illustrated in the drawing and which will be more fully described hereinafter and particularly pointed out in the appended claims. I

In the accompanying drawing on whichthere e is shown preferred embodiments of the invention,

Fig. 1 is a side elevational view of a wire cutter and stripper embodying the features of the present invention, this view illustrating the open posi-y tion of the jaws of the cutter;

Fig. 2 isY afragmentary elevational view of the jaws ofthe cutter with pari-,s thereof shown in section to more clearly illustrate the 'construction Fig. 3 is a side elevational view'of the wire cutv ter andvstripper depicted in Fig. l and illustrating n the relative disposition of the parts when the jaws are their closed position;

Fig. 4 is a'. top plan view ofthe wire cutter and stripper depicted in Fig. 3;

Fig. 5 is anelevational view depicting end portions of the conventional twin lead transmission ticularly concerned with the precise construction of the illustrated twin lead transmission wire, it will Vnot be further described in detail, and it is deemed suiiicient for all intentions and purposes herein contained to show only portions thereof adjacent to and cooperating with the wire cutter and stripper 2D contemplated herein. It is to be understood that details of'construction of such twin lead transmission wire may be modied to suit particular conditions or to satisfy the engineering genius of various competitive manufacturers, and we do not'wish to be limited to the precise construction of these elements as set'forth, except where such construction particularly relates. to or is concerned with the invention contemplated herein. Y

`I-lLaving thus described, by way of example, a

. possible adaptation of the wire cutter and stripper 23 as contemplated herein and having described the general environment surrounding the adaptation, the specific construction and'cooperating functions of the parts of said wire cutter and stripper assembly with' which the invention is particularly concerned, will now beV described in detail. y

In the exemplary embodimentof the invention depicted in Figs. 1, 2, 3 and 4, the wire cutter and stripper assembly 20 with which the present invention'is particularly 'concerned comprises, in

wire and illustrating the cut or bite takenbyv the y Y wire cutter contemplated herein; and

Fig. 6 is an elevationalview of the "twin lead transmission lwire showing therend portions of the wire exposed as a result of theoperation of the stripper'portion of the wire cutter contem-v plated herein. v

The drawing is to be understood as being more or less' of a schematic character for the purpose of illustrating or disclosing typical-or preferred forms of the improvementscontemplated herein and in the drawing like reference characters iden.i tify the same parts in the several views.

As one'possible example ofv advantageous ein.-`

` of -a polyethylene, or the like,.composition. When it'is soughtto connect the end portions ofthe wire ,to terminals it is necessary to remove the central portions of the insulation 23 as shown in Fig. 5, thereby having two individual wires. Thereafter, it may be desirable to remove a poi'- tion of the remaining insulationto expose the wires as illustrated in Fig. 6 for the purpose of making connections with terminals.

yParticular attention is directed to the out orv bite, taken by the contemplatedqwire cutter and stripper 2li, this particular shape and design providing numerous advantages which will be hereinafter more fully described in the operation of the` device. Y 1 l Suiiice it to say,'since the invention is not parlead transmission wire Av general, two handlesS and A3|'pivotally 'interconnected by means of a' pivot-pin 32 and each handle respectively having bent end portions 33 and 34 'terminating Vto denevjaws adapted for wire cutting operations, said handle 3i). being pro-V vided with a stop 35 having end portions 36 adapted to engage portions of the -handle 3| to `restrict movement of the handle 3| during operation of the device, the end portions 36 of the stop 35 being Vprovided withl a wire stripper blade 38 operable when the jaws are in their closed position as shown in Fig. 3. l

According to the construction of the present invention the handle 3| is formed of a single piece of a suitable metal to define the shape. as shown while the handle'30 is rformed of two identical spaced metal pieces 40 and 4| which have operatively disposed therebetween portionsI of the hanfdle 3| as shown. The side pieces 46 and 4| .of the handle 3B are held in their spaced relationship as shown in Fig. 4 by means of spacers d2, 43 and f Suitable rivets as at 45, 46 and 51 eifectivelyY hold the respective portions 44 of the stop 35.

spacers and the side pieces 40 and 4| in their re spective operative position.

Particular attention should be directed to Fig. 2 wherein there is illustrated the specic construction of the jaws of thercontemplated wire cutter. It can be seen that the respective cutting edges Iare 41 and 48. Moreover, Vthe spacer 42 is provided with an arcuate surface 43 complementary to the rounded nose 5|) of the jaw 34 and having as its center point the axis of the pivot pin 32. Y

Attention is invited to the arcuate shape ofthe cutting edges 4B which has particular signicance in the fact that when the device is em- Y ployed for cutting the insulation 23 of the twin lead wire A the inner portions of the` jaw start the cutting operation and, as the cutting proceeds, the outermost portion will begin cutting through the insulation, rand finally, the cutting will proceed from both vends toward the center portion. This action facilitates ease in cutting and prevents chang of the insulation.

It is notable that the entire wire cutting tool is hardened with the Iexception of the spacer 42. The cutting edges 41 and 48 of the wire cutting jaws may be sharpened by merely rubbing a sharpening tool across the edges of the jaws.

In operation the device may be employed as a wire cutter, this operation being effected by placing the Wire across the cutter blades and closing the jaws. Further operation contemplated by the device is the removing of excess insulation 23 of twin lead transmission Wire disclosed in Fig. 5. This operation being effective to separate the end portions into two separate wires each having some insulation remaining on the wires to provide an effective seal. When it is desired to secure the loose separated ends of the wires to respective terminals, itis necessary to perform a third operation contemplated by the subject tool, that is to say, stripping the remaining insulation from the wire a predetermined distance to expose the wire for securement to respective terminals. This operation is accomplished by placing the wire in the cutter blade and closingv the jaws to a position as shown in Fig. 3 and thereafter pulling the Wire through the stripper blade which action will strip off the remaining insulation and expose the Wires.

An important feature of the present invention is th-e particular manner by which the contemplated Wire cutter is operative to remove theV excess insulation from twin lead transmission wire. In Figs. 5 and 6 it can be seen that the innermost end of the bite or cut defines a curved surface 60 which prevents further tearing of the insulation. In prior art devices it is necessary to make two cuts parallel to the Wires and thereafter to make a cross cut which will leave a square cut with probable tears in the corners ,thereof which, when strain is placed upon them, will tend to tear further which has been found objectionable for television installations.

From the foregoing disclosures it may be observed that we have provided an improved combination wire cutter and strip-per which effectively fullls the objects thereof as hereinbefore set forth and which provides numerous advantages which may be summarized as follows:

1. structurally simple, eiicient and durable;

2. Economical to manufacture and readily adaptable to mass production manufacturing principles; and

3. The provision of a combination Wire cutter and stripper designed fand adapted to condition invention, and we do not wish to be limited to the precise details of construction set forth but wish to avail ourselves of all changes within the vscope of the appended claim.l v

We claim: A wire cutter adapted for cutting twin-lead wire, comprising a first handle means formed by two one-piece planar members defi'ning'longitu-V dinally extending spaced side pieces, a second handle means formed by a one-piece planar member and having a portion thereof disposed between said spaced side pieces and pivotally connected thereto for pivotal action therebetween, spacers fixedly disposed between said side pieces one at each end thereof and one Vadjacent the central regions thereof to maintain the side pieces in spaced relationship, said centrally disposed spacer being flxedly secured to said spaced side pieces of said rst handle means rearwardly of the pivot axis and defining an elongated mem.- ber extending transversely of the longitudinal :axis of said Wire cutter, and the extended end being adapted to engage a portion of said second handle means thereby to restrict elo-sing movementof the handles during the operation of the wire cutter, the spaced side pieces adjacent the front end thereof defining therebetween a pair o f cutting edges, sad second handle means at said front end thereof dening conc-ave cutting edges cooperating with said rst mentioned cutting edges and terminating -in a convexly rounded nose portion, and the spacer disposed adjacent the cutting end of said Wire cutter having a forwardly concave arcuate cutting surface arranged to cooperate with said convexly rounded nose portion for the cutting operation.

CHARLES I-I. ARNT.

WOODROW A. BOWMAN.

References Cited in the flle of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 47,785 Baldwin May 23, 1865 375,555 Loffer Dec. 27, 1887 1,096,983 Aaron May 19, 1914 1,812,350 Lingwood June 30, 1931 1,814,589 EndSley July 14, 1931 2,357,197 Hood Aug. 29, 1944 

